News

The second day in the murder trial of Tacoa Talley, opened with yet another witness on the stand. On the day before the murder, Samantha Bevans met a man, Jayson Wells who had been living out of his car. She convinced the man to give her a ride the following day where the two picked up Tacoa Talley. She then convinced the man to give her a ride to the Linn County Courthouse where she had to be.

Get ready for some outdoor family fun at Memorial Park this summer. SACG (Shellsburg Area Community Group) will be installing a six hole, family-friendly disc golf course in Memorial Park, along with the completion of the Memorial Trail loop and a 10-car parking area near the entrance. SACG has been working toward this for several years. The City asked SACG to take on comprehensive park planning, so SACG set up a Parks Planning Committee, which consists of Jim Hidinger (chair), Kelsey Fish, Tricia Sheldon, Deb Oldakowski, Nancy Thorkildson and Jill Hidinger.

This week will be a little different for news coverage due to the trial. Because I plan to be there most of the day, every day, I'll be working during breaks and at night, so I expect the outbound email might be a little light this week while I concentrate on that. So ya'll behave out there!I will put one more request to all of you who support Vinton Today as we finish up celebrating this 13th Year.

The first day of the Tacoa Talley trial began on Tuesday, April 11, 2022. Talley has been accused of murder in the death of Jodie Bevans of Palo. On Monday, 105 potential jurors arrived at the Benton County Courthouse. Lawyers settled on just 14 Benton County residents to serve on the jury. Arguments began on Tuesday. Jurors heard about a camping trip that was cut short upon the discovery that Jodie did not arrive at work on the Friday of her murder.

Benton County Farm Bureau will be holding a Matching Donation Drive to help raise funds for the Benton County Fairgrounds! These funds will be used to upgrade the beef arena, including new steel to replace damaged trusses, LED lights, and a new sign. All donations will be matched by Benton County Farm Bureau- up to $3,500!*Make checks payable to Benton County Farm Bureau with “Fair Donation” in the memo line.

Cyberattack Occurred On Contractor’s Computer System; Iowa Medicaid System Was Not BreachedThe Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announces today that some Medicaid members’ personal information was compromised in a national data breach affecting a contractor’s computer system last year. The Iowa Medicaid system was not breached.

The Benevolent and Protective Grand Lodge Order of Elks Cedar Rapids, Elk’s Lodge 251, presented the Elks Distinguished Citizenship Award to Officer Tyler Brandt, of the Benton County Sheriff's Department. They recognized him for his "outstanding and meritorious service to humanity."Brandt is the School Resource Officer in the Benton Community School District.

The National Lieutenant Governors Association (NLGA) has opened the application period for the annual Lt. Governors’ STEM Scholarship Program, sponsored by ACT, to award up to $1,000 to 12 schools nationally to support STEM-related activities for youth. Applications will be accepted until May 1, 2023, with award recipients announced and funded in Summer 2023.

Weeks of preparation go into the annual five minute Easter Egg hunt each year. This year the Vinton Kiwanis Club provided a bit of fun for the area children on Saturday morning at the Kiwanis Park. Children of all ages arrived eagerly with baskets, buckets and bags. A few minutes before the hunt began, the children had a chance to visit with the Easter Bunny.

   Governor Kim Reynolds released the following statement in response to the Biden Administration's newly proposed change to Title IX rules, allowing biological men to participate in women’s sports:   “Generations of women have fought for Title IX and the opportunity to compete. This new rule, proposed by the Biden Administration, creates a loophole for biological men to unfairly compete in women’s sports.